Apple Inc.'s shares slumped more than 9% in US trading on July 31, wiping out a chunk of this year's gains, after the iPhone maker issued a weaker-than-expected revenue forecast for the September quarter despite posting better-than-expected quarterly results.
As of 10:41 a.m. EDT (July 31), Apple shares were down 9.26% at $302.56 on the Nasdaq. The company projected 9%-11% revenue growth for the current quarter, below Wall Street's expectation of around 12%, as persistent supply-chain bottlenecks continue to limit production.
Reuters reported that during Apple's post-earnings call, Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said, "We're seeing some very significant (supply) constraints currently with limited flexibility in the supply chain to remedy it."
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Cook added that Apple is evaluating all options for alternative memory-chip suppliers as shortages in advanced chipmaking continue to weigh on production.
Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh said Apple expects iPhone revenue to grow at a mid-teens rate, below analysts' expectations of 17.6%, while gross margins are likely to be in the 47%-48% range during the quarter.
For the fiscal third quarter ended June 27, Apple reported revenue of $109.42 billion, up 16.4% from a year earlier and ahead of analysts' estimates, according to LSEG.
Net profit came in at $2.02 per share, including an 11-cent benefit from US tariff refunds. Excluding that benefit, earnings still topped Wall Street expectations.
The iPhone business remained Apple's biggest growth driver, with revenue rising 21.7% to $54.25 billion, surpassing analyst estimates of $53.86 billion, according to LSEG. Mac revenue also climbed 28.7% to $10.35 billion, comfortably beating expectations.
However, Apple's high-margin services business disappointed investors. Services revenue rose 12.1% to $30.74 billion, missing analysts' estimate of $31.22 billion.
Apple also said Greater China revenue rose 22.4% to $18.82 billion, although it fell short of analysts' expectations. Looking ahead, Cook said Apple plans to introduce premium AI-related features under iCloud+, suggesting customers could pay for advanced capabilities in the future.
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